St Ignatius' Church, Norwood

St Ignatius' Church, Norwood is a Catholic Church located in the Adelaide suburb of Norwood, South Australia, Australia. It is dedicated in honour of St Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, the order of priests who founded the Church and have always and continue to administer the parish, on behalf of the Archdiocese of Adelaide.

St Ignatius' Church, Norwood
Saint Ignatius Church
AddressQueen Street, Norwood, South Australia
CountryAustralia
DenominationCatholic Church
Religious orderSociety of Jesus
Websitenorwoodparish.org.au
History
StatusChurch
Founded17 October 1869 (1869-10-17)
Founder(s)Very Rev. Vicar General, J. Smyth[1]
DedicationSt Ignatius of Loyola
Dedicated7 August 1870 (1870-08-07)[2]
Architecture
Architectural typeChurch
StyleVictorian Italianate
Years built1869 – 1870
Specifications
MaterialsGlen Osmond stone; cement; timber; Mintaro slate
Administration
ArchdioceseAdelaide

History

In September 1869, the Jesuits purchased a property owned by Charles Draper and known as Cannonbury House, at the corner of William and Queen Streets in Norwood.[3] At that time, it consisted of a large block of land with a brick house of eight rooms, kitchen, lean-to, stable, coach house, garden and paddock.

The church was constructed on part of that large block of land and was dedicated on 7 August 1870.[2] It was large and imposing, rectangular, built in the Victorian Italianate style with two towers topped by crosses at the entrance.[4]

At this time, Father Joseph Tappeiner SJ, close friend and advisor to St Mary Mackillop, moved to the Parish from Sevenhill. At the same time, Mackillop was excommunicated from the Catholic Church by Bishop Shiel. During this time, Mackillop rented a house diagonally across William Street from the Church. Some Jesuit priests at the Church provided Communion to her in secret. In 1872, Mackillop's excommunication was lifted, and she first celebrated Mass again in the Norwood Church. The Church has continued to have a long association with Mackillop and her Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart up until the current day.

In 1891, a bell, known as the Angelus bell, was installed, imported from Ireland and purchased by a Mr Delano, a prominent parishioner.

In 1897, an organ was installed in memory of Fr Joseph Peters S.J., who served at the parish from 1874 until his death in 1895.[4]

In 1925, a Lourdes grotto was constructed on the grounds of the Church which remains there today. In 1929, Count O’Loughlin donated three marble statues to the parish. The statue of St Bernadette of Lourdes is still at the grotto. The statues of Saint Ignatius and Saint Francis Xavier were inside the church for a time but are now on the Bellarmine Lawns at Saint Ignatius' College's Athelstone campus and the garden to the rear of Manresa (the priests' residence at Norwood) respectively.

The 1954 Adelaide earthquake caused the cross on top of the northern tower to be dislodged. Parish priest Fr Thomas Costelloe SJ decided to remove the cross from the southern tower rather than repair the other.

The transepts, completed in 1954, doubled the capacity of the church. At this time, the sanctuary and sacristy were enlarged, and an altar rail measuring 25m. spanned the width of the church.

In 2017, a distinctive sculpture of St Ignatius as a pilgrim was completed and stands outside the entrance to the church.

During 2019, a new sanctuary window, new pews and carpeting, along with marble high altar, marble blessed altar, lectern and baptismal font were installed.

School

The Church is associated with the neighbouring Saint Ignatius' College, Adelaide, which is also administered by the Australian Jesuits. It is also associated with the neighbouring Saint Joseph's Memorial School, which is administered by the Josephites. It is one of the very first schools started by St Mary Mackillop, who had a close personal association with the Church from its very earliest days.

See also

References
  1. "ST. IGNATIUS CHURCH, NORWOOD". The South Australian Advertiser. Vol. XII, no. 3434. South Australia. 18 October 1869. p. 3. Retrieved 18 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. "ST. IGNATIUS CHURCH, NORWOOD". Adelaide Observer. Vol. XXVII, no. 1506. South Australia. 13 August 1870. p. 10. Retrieved 18 August 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. "150 years in Norwood, South Australia". St Ignatius Church Sesquicentenary 2019. 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  4. Shield, David (September 2013). "St Ignatius' Catholic Church". Organ Historical Trust of Australia. Retrieved 18 August 2023.

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